Nearly four decades since the milestone of the 6th National Party Congress (1986), the renovation process has changed the face of the country, opening a period of comprehensive development and deep integration. On that journey, Hung Yen - a new land formed from the convergence of Hung Yen and Thai Binh provinces has had a strong transformation. From a purely agricultural countryside, it has now become a dynamic industrial, commercial and service center, with the aspiration to become a new growth pole of the Red River Delta.
From hardship to rise
In the late 80s and early 90s, the whole country entered the innovation orbit with countless challenges. Both Hung Yen and Thai Binh at that time were also in that flow with difficult burdens. Comrade Bui Quang Huy, former Standing Deputy Secretary of Hung Yen Provincial Party Committee, recalled: During the period when it was still Hai Hung province and in 1997, after the re-establishment of the province, Hung Yen was ranked in the second poorest group in the country, just above Bac Kan province. The budget only reached 61 billion VND/year, in which the main source of revenue was from agricultural tax; industry had almost nothing except a few small projects in Pho Noi. The infrastructure was weak, traffic mainly relied on National Highway 39 and the dike roads along the Red River, and people's lives were still lacking.
Meanwhile, after the national resistance wars, Thai Binh - which was considered the great rice granary of the North - also faced the pressure of economic restructuring. To escape poverty and slow development, the Party Committee, government and people of Thai Binh implemented a breakthrough thinking starting from the fields. Comrade Nguyen Duy Viet, former Deputy Head of the Central Mass Mobilization Commission, former Deputy Secretary of the Provincial Party Committee, former Chairman of the Thai Binh Provincial People's Committee recalled: "Implementing the innovation policy, we chose to restructure agriculture with the consolidation of land plots, large-scale fields, hardening of canals, mechanization, and bringing scientific and technological advances into production. As a result, from the achievement of 5 tons of rice/ha, Thai Binh rose to 10 tons/ha, then reached a value of 50 million VND/ha".
On the basis of modern agriculture, Thai Binh simultaneously "turned on the switch" for industrial development with the emergence of industrial parks and industrial clusters (IPs, IZs) at the district level; welcoming new capital flows, including FDI enterprises bringing technology to the province. At the same time, social life was taken care of from restoring cultural spaces to implementing the project of one doctor per commune, consolidating grassroots health care and spreading the mass sports movement. Hung Yen also began to open a new direction with the policy of "rolling out the red carpet" to attract businesses. The first concentrated IPs in Pho Noi gradually took shape, marking the transformation from a purely agricultural province to industrial development. Along with the economy, cultural and social life also had many changes from investment policies to upgrade the health and education systems, and taking care of the spiritual life of the people. It can be said that, in the midst of difficulties, the correct decisions of the Party Committee and government of each province have lit the fire of innovation, laying the foundation for Hung Yen and Thai Binh to gradually break through and keep pace with the country's innovation process.
Breakthrough development
As a witness to the development of his hometown, Mr. Phung Tan Phu in Thanh Khe village, Nhu Quynh commune shared: “I feel that since the early years of the 21st century, the province has begun to develop strongly. Pho Noi A and Pho Noi B Industrial Parks have expanded to become destinations for domestic and foreign enterprises. Hung Yen has transformed from a purely agricultural province into a dynamic industrial area, creating jobs and income for many people.”
Talking to us about the changes in his hometown, Mr. Tran Duy Ngoc, Vo Ngai village, Vu Thu commune excitedly said: “The prosperous development of the economy in industry, agriculture, and marine economy is a favorable condition for the province to pay attention to investing in rural infrastructure. Thai Binh used to be the leading locality in the country in expanding and concreting rural roads. The most memorable is the Tan De bridge built and inaugurated in 2002, breaking the "oasis" situation, opening a new era for trade and travel of the people".
In the first two decades of the 21st century, the socio-economic development of both Thai Binh and Hung Yen has made strong breakthroughs and the period 2020 - 2025 continues to reach achievements considered as new peaks of the development process. Notably, the average GRDP growth rate reaches 9.17%/year, bringing the economic scale in 2025 to more than 328,000 billion VND, 1.73 times higher than in 2020. The economic structure is shifting rapidly with industry - construction accounting for more than half, services are increasingly expanding, agriculture is being restructured towards high quality. As comrade Bui Quang Huy, former Standing Deputy Secretary of Hung Yen Provincial Party Committee once commented: If in the early days of re-establishment, Hung Yen had almost no industry, now it has become a launching pad, creating a completely new look for the province.
Over the past 5 years, the two provinces have established 11 more industrial parks and 26 industrial clusters, attracting hundreds of large projects with a total registered capital of more than 396,000 billion VND and nearly 9.6 billion USD. Modern infrastructure and strategic investors bringing advanced technology have changed the face of production. Small-scale industry and craft villages still play an important role, both preserving traditional values and creating stable jobs for tens of thousands of local workers. Trade and services have developed vigorously and made clear breakthroughs. Comrade Tran Thi Hong Hanh, Deputy Director of the Department of Industry and Trade, said: The total retail sales and consumer service revenue of the province increased by more than 23% per year, e-commerce has become a popular consumption channel, and export turnover in 2025 is estimated to reach nearly 12 billion USD, double that of 2020. These are very impressive results and demonstrate the effectiveness of innovation and creativity from the province to the grassroots. Agriculture has turned into an advantage thanks to production according to VietGAP standards, the widespread OCOP program, the cultivation value per hectare of land has increased rapidly, affirming a sustainable direction.
Along with economic development, social life has had many positive changes. The most exciting results are: Health insurance covers 93.75%, education remains in the leading group in the country, primary health care is upgraded, digital transformation covers 100% of communes and wards. It can be said that the 2020 - 2025 term has created a solid foundation, crystallized from the leadership vision with the constant innovation of the provincial Party Committee and government, the accompanying and joint efforts of businesses and people of all walks of life.
Firmly entering the new era
Located in the center of the Northern economic triangle with modern industrial parks, the Northern rice granary, potential sea areas, vast land and increasingly complete connecting infrastructure, Hung Yen today has enough "wings" to break through to develop. All classes of people in the province are excited and clearly see that the room for developing industry, services, and high-tech agriculture in the next 10-15 years is extremely large. In particular, the province's special competitive advantage is the human resource of more than 3.5 million people; complete and modern inter-regional transportation; rich land fund and resources; energy, logistics, and the constantly changing marine economy; open investment mechanisms and policies and the strong development aspirations of the locality.
Looking back at 40 years of innovation, what the two provinces of Hung Yen and Thai Binh have achieved has created a solid foundation, "capital", and valuable experience for Hung Yen to grow stronger today. Trust is placed in the wise leadership of the Party Committee, the dynamism of the government and the aspirations of the people. From the crystallization of tradition and the achievements of innovation, Hung Yen will certainly affirm its position as a modern industrial, urban and service center in the Red River Delta, contributing worthily to the industrialization, modernization and international integration of the country in the new era.
Ha Thanh
Source: https://baohungyen.vn/hung-yen-40-nam-doi-moi-vuon-len-cung-dat-nuoc-3186023.html
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